Iraq – Baghdad and Washington have reached an agreement on the withdrawal of international coalition forces from Iraq, according to a plan to be implemented in stages over the next two years.
Sources told Reuters that the plan includes the withdrawal of hundreds of US-led coalition forces by September 2025 and the rest by the end of 2026.
The plan has been largely agreed upon and is awaiting final approval from both countries and a date for its announcement.
“We have reached an agreement, and now it is just a matter of when it will be announced,” a senior US official said.
The two countries are also seeking to establish a new advisory relationship that could allow some US forces to remain in Iraq after the withdrawal.
The sources said that the official announcement was initially scheduled to be issued weeks ago, but was postponed due to the regional escalation linked to the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, and to settle some remaining details.
These sources told Reuters that the announcement of the agreement may happen during this month.
Farhad Alaaldin, the Iraqi prime minister’s foreign affairs adviser, said technical talks with Washington on the withdrawal had ended.
He added, “We are about to take the relationship between Iraq and the members of the international coalition to a new level that focuses on bilateral relations in the military, security, economic and cultural fields.”
A State Department spokesman and a defense official said that US President Joe Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani confirmed in a joint statement in April that they would review several factors to determine when and how the coalition mission in Iraq would end and transition to permanent bilateral security partnerships.
Al-Sudani said earlier that US forces – despite his appreciation for the assistance they provide – have become a magnet for instability, as they are frequently targeted and usually respond with attacks without coordination with the Iraqi government.
The agreement, when announced, is likely to represent a political victory for the Iraqi prime minister, who is seeking to balance Baghdad’s position as an ally of both Washington and Tehran, which are on opposite sides of the Middle East.
The United States has about 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in neighboring Syria, as part of a coalition formed in 2014 to fight the Islamic State group after it overran vast areas of both countries.
The withdrawal of coalition forces will represent a significant shift in Washington’s military posture in the region.
Source: Reuters
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2024-09-08 08:21:10
